Revelations
by DrawnToDarkness
Summary: Post 1x09, set in the not-so-distant future. SkyeWard fic.


_A/N: Having not actually seen 1x09 (and not being able to until Friday), I'm not entirely sure of how accurate this is in terms of what we saw on screen. So apologies if something in this doesn't fit with the show :) _

_A/N 2: Having seen a handful of gifs of *that* first scene... I'm not entirely convinced May & Ward did hook up and she wasn't just teasing him about not letting the others know. I don't know. We'll soon find out, I guess! This story assumes that they did, though I'll probably end up writing another on actually seeing the episode..._

* * *

He doesn't kiss her on the lips. He's never kissed her like that.

He doesn't call out her name or murmur sweet nothing's in her ear or hold her when it's over.

It's just sex. A purely physical thing. Ward might feel guilty for using her if he didn't know that May was using him right back.

He's pretty sure they both think of other people and that doesn't bother him. Not until after, when they're lying side by side in silence, sweat cooling on their bodies as they nurse another drink.

Oh, it doesn't bother him that May wishes he was someone else; it bothers him that despite his release, he's still aching for something else.

Someone else.

And through it all, despite their best efforts, the demons of their pasts, the ones they're trying to silence, still rage on.

* * *

When Skye kisses him, the world seems to stop for a second and then spin faster.

His hands anchor her to him he kisses her back, desperate for her and the salvation she provides.

Where May is taunt muscle and battle scarred, Skye is soft curves and smooth skin.

His rookie is passionate but in a sort of innocent way. What she lacks in experience she makes up for in enthusiasm and after, Ward holds her as close as he can, constantly stroking her skin as she presses kisses to his chest above his heart.

The ghosts of his past are finally silenced and it's all he can do not to weep in gratitude.

* * *

It goes to hell two days later.

Skye overhears him tell May "it can never happen again". His rookie is smart; she puts two and two together and instantly gets four.

It's the hurt in her eyes, the flash of betrayal, that sticks in his mind the most.

That and the way the usually tactile woman flinched away when he reached out to touch her.

* * *

He doesn't know if she tells anyone else what she knows.

He suspects not; if she had, the atmosphere on the Bus would be ten times worse than what it is.

In the end, though, May does it for her and confesses all to Coulson. When the normally stoic woman leaves their boss's office almost an hour later, her eyes are swollen and red and Ward thinks he knows who she was thinking of during their brief time together.

Coulson never says anything, but Ward catches his eye sometimes and sees something in themthat he doesn't like, something he doesn't feel proud of.

Since Coulson knows and Skye knows, it's only a matter of time before FitzSimmons find out. He catches Fitz looking at him a little speculatively at times but Simmons's response confuses him...

... until they're alone on a mission - Coulson chose not to pair Skye with him at her subdued request - and he's faced with the angriest Jemma Simmons he's ever seen.

He knew his rookie and the female half of FitzSimmons had become close friends but the vehement way Simmons berates him surprises him.

Just as her revelation that he's broken Skye's heart takes his breath away.

* * *

It comes to a head after an awkward two weeks aboard the Bus - two of the worst weeks of his life.

Coulson seems to have forgiven them their indiscretion and when Ward catches his boss coming out of the cockpit and sees May smile almost shyly at Coulson later on, he's pleased for her. For them.

It's only later, when they're holding vigil over the injured member of their team that Coulson reveals his change of heart was down to Skye and her telling him that their attempt at finding some comfort together made sense.

Skye.

The injured party.

Ward tightens his hold in her hand and thinks that in her current state, at least Skye can't pull away.

* * *

He dreams as he sits beside her bed, waiting for her to wake up.

He dreams of the well, of his brothers.

He dreams of the madman who decided the best way to get rid of Skye was to chain her to a pipe in an underground chamber rapidly filling with water.

He remembers diving into the murky water, searching for her, finding her limp and lifeless.

In reality, he shot at the padlock keeping the chains in place around her and resurfaced with Skye in his arms. In his dreams, she opens her eyes underwater, her eyes accusing as he hears her voice in his head.

_"Where were you, Grant? Where were you when I needed you?"_

He wakes up with a jolt when something in the room moves.

Realises less than a minute later that it was Skye.

She stares at him silently, wondering why he's there.

He stares right back, hoping she can see the reason in his eyes.

* * *

It's a fresh start for all of them. Near brushes with death are good at making people more willing to forgive even if forgetting will take a little bit longer.

Skye resumes her training with him.

Ward doesn't resume his not-quite-relationship with May, and not just because the older agent is already in a relationship of her own.

They don't act on the feelings building between them, not until she's a certified SHIELD Agent and can call Ward her partner instead of her SO. Sure, he's the more experienced partner of the duo and he takes the lead more often than not but they feel a little more like equals and that's when it happens.

They kiss.

Again.

And this time, Ward swears he'll never let her go.

* * *

_End._


End file.
